Silent Night Deadly Night

Watching SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT today, it's difficult to believe that it was quite controversial when first released in theaters. In reality, it's just another slasher film with a holiday theme. The controversy arose from its depiction of a killer Claus, and its daring to use Christmas time as a backdrop.

Far from being blasphemous, it's purposefully absurd, and the not-so-merry madman (Charles Dierkop) is perfectly "suited" for the subject matter: revenge against those on his naughty list. The entire mood of SN, DN lets us know immediately that it's not to be taken seriously, at all. Linnea Quigley's "death-by-antlers" scene alone should be enough of a tip-off that the whole affair is tongue-in-rosy-cheek. Speaking of Ms. Quigley, she just can't seem to keep her clothes on. Not even in December! Brrr! Anyway, just settle in for a nice cozy evening of jingle kills...

Traumatised after witnessing a man in a Santa suit brutally murder his parents, a teenager goes on a killing spree after his employer forces him to dress as Santa in this controversial horror thriller. With a plot that mostly follows slasher clichés, 'Silent Night, Deadly Night' is easy to forget amid the surplus of 1980s horror flicks, but it is a highly competent production that stands up well to revision. The film actually does a better job than John Carpenter's far more iconic 'Halloween' in establishing the psychology and mindset of its serial killer protagonist. Eighteen minutes of exposition may sound like a lot, but it works magnificently for getting us to understand how the character ticks and actually pity him, heinous though his actions may be. The film takes a potent swipe at church-run orphanages too in which children have religion forced upon them with the protagonist a victim of this system in addition the aforementioned childhood trauma. The film does not do itself any favours by painting the nuns as stereotypes and lead actor Robert Brian Wilson is never really convincing, but everything else falls into place so well here that it is hard not to like it. The filmmakers approach the project with the perfect dose of dark humour too; "he sure knows how to handle kids!" comments one mother after Wilson quietly threatens a girl sitting on his Santa's lap! The Yuletide themed deaths also come with streak of black comedy and there is an awesome 'Battleship Potemkin' lions style sequence in which several toy soldiers appear to react to a toy store death.

I enjoyed this film alot. I'm a horror nut and I love 80's slasher movies..so no its not for everybody...but for those who do like 80's slashers you should really check this out. The story is good, it sounds cheesy with santa being a killer, but the back story is very well done, the character development is great, the music works, and it has one of the coolest death scenes in a movie ever....(antlers) Sure, here and there it can be cheesy-PUNISH!- but it still is very watchable and I recommend it to any horror fan around the holidays.

Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)

*** (out of 4)

Low-budget slasher is without question one of the most controversial of the "Golden Age" of the genre. A young boy sees his mom and dad viciously murdered by a man in a Santa suit, which of course traumatizes him. After years in an abusive orphanage, the boy grows up and one Christmas Eve his job requires him to put on the red suit. He flips out and goes on a killing spree. SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT is a fine little movie that manages to do quite a bit with its very limited budget. There are some very obvious flaws including some questionable script moments, some really bad acting and some at times weak direction but there are also some very effective moments. The opening of the film has always been rather creepy in a low-budget way and especially the early scenes with grandpa. I'm sure every kid remembers being young and having some old person creep them out and the film perfectly shows this. The opening murders of the parents are also quite effective when seen through the eyes of a kid. The first half of the film really isn't all that violent because it's building up the trauma of the main character so that he has a reason to snap later in the picture. This here is something not too many slashers tried and while it doesn't work perfectly due to the screenplay, it's at least a good shot. Once the death scenes start up we get quite a few memorable ones, which of course are best seen in their uncut glory. There's the infamous reindeer sequence plus several rather over-the-top but effective scenes at the toy store. Fans of the red stuff are going to get quite a bit of it here even though it's certainly not the most graphic film out there. There's also plenty of gratuitous nudity including some great shots of a young Linnea Quigley. Again, the performances are all pretty bad and this takes away from some of the elements that the story is trying to tell. Still, the low-budget actually adds a certain atmosphere to the picture that it wouldn't have had with more money and a more talented cast. SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT is certainly a very flawed film but it remains an entertaining slasher.

Second viewing- 7.5/10.

"Santa's Watching, Santa's Creeping, Now you're nodding, now you're sleeping. Were you good for mom and dad? Santa knows if you've been bad"- The best damn original song from any horror movie... ever. In my opinion, of course.

A very enjoyable flick. The kills are top notch, the acing is... passable. The setting is spooky ad the music is super duper great.

So rather Santa's raping you, strangling you with Christmas lights, or decapitating you, there's tons of Christmas bloodshed to go around.

You've Made it Through Halloween, now try and survive Christmas